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Our Mission

STEP seeks to protect the most vulnerable children in ways that become locally sustainable.

Our Vision

Our long term goal is to work towards better child protection systems in Iraq. To do this
we work directly with professionals to strengthen key services for children. We also
work directly with children to empower them, to understand their rights and how to secure them.

Learn More

Latest News

Nadia - October 2017

Dear STEP Supporters,

Since the referendum vote in the Kurdish Region of Iraq there have been a number of sanctions imposed, and displacement of more people from their homes. Leaders are stating that they wish to resolve the situation through talks and we are hopeful these will succeed. Despite this, STEP projects continue to run and are supporting the most vulnerable children in the region like Nadia.

HELPING NADIA FIND HER VOICE

Nadia Ali Mahmud (not her real name) is 15 years old. When a rocket hit her home in Iraq Nadia was only very young and she lost her hearing. Due to her deafness she has never been able to attend school, but through attending a STEP Child Friendly Space she can now write her name and has found a love of drawing. She met one of our staff with her father to talk about her story, how STEP has helped her and to share her art work.

Nadia's family fled increased fighting in their home town and travelled over 250 miles into the Kurdish Region of Iraq in search of safety. Nadia now lives in a tent with22 other family members in a displaced persons camp about 45mins drive outside the city. The camp is surrounded by mountains that are bare and dry in the summer and snow covered in the winter. She was very happy for STEP to visit her tent to show us her paintings.

Nadia is originally from an area in Iraq called Salah Al-deen. Her father worked for an American company and when asked what life used to be like explained, 'life was very good we had no problems'.When Nadia was very young she was eating dinner with her family when a rocket bomb stuck their home. Nadia and her mother were badly injured and two of her brothers died in the blast. She suffered huge physical and psychological trauma. Nadia lost her hearing and does not speak. Due to hear deafness Nadia has never been able to attend school and her father explained, 'She was always sad and had nothing to do.She was not verysocial and not willing to see a lot of people.'

Nadia learnt that STEP was running a Child Friendly Space through contact with the STEP Mobile Teams. After visiting the space she really enjoyed it, started coming regularly to activities and building relationships with the STEP staff. The team started to see a huge change in her when they discovered her love of drawing. For the first time since the rocket hit their home Nadia was able to express her feelings and ideas through drawing. Her father said,

'She is very happy visiting the Child Friendly Space, she started drawing, learning and expressing her feelings better. She's very happy now and she has many friends.'Although she had never attended school, through the STEP Child Friendly Space she has been able to learn how to write letters and can now write her name in English as well as Arabic.

Nadia is one of over 10,000 children STEP are supporting. Thank you to all those who have given financially to STEP or volunteered your time. As Christmas approaches please consider other ways you may be able to support our work
like Give as you Live!

Teddies, Books and Policy - July 2017

STEP has
coordinated with another NGO working with children in Mosul and has sent 1,000
trauma teddies for distribution. Another 50 have gone to
the children's cancer hospital in the city and 8 more boxes were
shipped from the UK this month.

Thank you to all
who are involved in supporting STEP to provide this support. The UNICEF
Regional Director for the Middle East in a press statement this month
said, "The worst of the violence in Mosul may be over but for too
many children in Mosul and the region, extreme suffering continues. As
with any other child in the world, they have the right to be
safeguarded, including through legal documentation.
Children are children!" As the displacement crisis of the
last 5 years in Northern Iraq slows the need for longer term child protection
and support strategies remain.

The Iraq government have passed
an new national child protection policy that is another step forward towards
creating a society that protects, promotes and enhances the lives of children.
The policy, supported by UNICEF will be implemented over the next 10 years.
As STEP has worked closely with both UNICEF and government we have
also been invited to be involved in discussions around this new policy. It
lays the groundwork for the government of Iraq to create an environment that
will protect the children of Iraq who are at risk and to support programs that
will prevent and respond to violence, abuse and neglect.

The new library within the
STEP Child Friendly Space at the Refugee camp in our governorate has
been wonderfully received by the children and the community. There are a
variety of Arabic books, including stories and novels, encyclopedias, art books,
history books and a few English books!

Funding has been secured for the
STEP Child Protection work in this camp to continue over the next
year as the team focus on training and mentoring key staff and the community
for this project to be handed over fully as community run structure by the end
of 2018.

As the
displacement situation in Northern Iraq stabilises it is still critical
STEP are able to continue work that supports the strategic child protection,
core training and mentorship work, the government and local NGO\'s are not
yet able to provide. Although there are many positive things occurring we are
in desperate need of funds to cover the core
costs of our work. If you are able to fundraise in any way or have professional
skills to support STEP to raise the money we need we would like to
hear from you. Marketing, Fundraising, and Social Media Platforms are all
areas in which we are looking for technical support.

Foster Care - April 2017

Over the last 8 years STEP has been working with
the Kurdish authorities on the necessary laws, processes, paperwork and
training to be able to implement a sustainable approach to caring for children
without a family. A huge milestone in this
collaborative project was reached when earlier this month the first child was
placed with a foster family.

In Kurdistan hundreds of children live in social
care homes. Although these children are provided with food, shelter and
education they do not get the love and affection every child needs to flourish.
In 1989 the world agreed that no child should be without a family and
the UN convention on the rights of the child stated: A child, for the full and
harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family
environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding.

On the 11th March 2015 STEP signed
a memorandum of understanding with the Kurdish government
of Sulaymaniyah to be able to pilot a foster care project in the
region. Five staff
from the Department of Social Services were appointed to work on the project; andintensive training of these staff commenced at the end of 2015
facilitated by our International Social Worker Consultant. A year later,
at the end of 2016 the Foster Care department was officially opened which was
another momentous occasion for all those involved.

At the official opening of the
department the Founder and Director of STEP said; \'this project will not remove
the need for the care home completely, but we hope that many more
children will be able to experience life in a caring family because of this project. We
know that children hold a special place in the hearts of the Kurdish people, we
will protect their identities and the identities of the children
placed with them so that the children, for the first time can experience a
normal childhood.\', A
government official also spoke to thank both STEP and UNICEF for
their \' continual
support\' and explained how foster
care is part of a wider project on how to give \'love and affection to
children\'.

With your help and support
STEP is able to continue
to facilitate this work and plans to have the second child placed by the
end of April. There are already 4 families who have been approved, undergoing a rigorous selection and vetting
process and are now waiting to receive a child in need.

Mobile Protection - January 2017

Athough the displacement from Mosul has not
been as large as initially expected, the battle for control of the city
continues and STEP are still on standby with UNHCR to help support with child
protection assessments when necessary. Since 2004 violent conflict in Iraq has
displaced 3.3 million people in addition to more than 200,000 displaced
Syrian refugees; who have fled their homes and sought refuge inside
Kurdistan. Within the Sulaymaniyah governorate there are now 8 camps; but you
may not be aware that 75% of refugees and 88% of internally displaced people
(IDPs) live in either rural or urban areas. STEP is working to
support these families through our Mobile Protection and Distribution Teams.

Mr Fazel and his family are Yazidi
beneficiaries of STEP food distribution. They left their home in
Mosul at the end of 2014 and fled
to Kurdistan for safety. Mr Fazel says; 'the food is
very good and it is sufficient for 20 days. People are very thankful for your
organization'. The STEP Mobile
and Distribution Teams both work to support vulnerable children and families
that are living in non camp settings. They work across 49 different locations and
last year supported over 1500 different families. They work in close partnership with each
other, as well as various other charities to be sure aid is not
duplicated. The teams identify and needs assess vulnerable children and families
against set criteria.

A total of 54% of internally
displaced people and refugees are under 19 years of age.

The
Distribution Team deliver monthly food packages and during the
winter months provide winterisation packages. These include warm clothes,
blankets and sometimes carpet to help insulate from the cold. The Mobile
Protection Team social workers identify and assess where child protection
case management is necessary. They then manage this case load alongside providing a wide range of
other psychosocial support activities to children through art, games, and music. In 13 areas they
have set up community child support centers where youth committees have
been created and parent awareness sessions are conducted as a child protection
preventative measure. When
appropriate, the social workers are also able to refer children and families to
other agencies that can further meet the specific needs of the child or family.

Mosul - October 2016

UNHCR are preparing to accept 710,000
displaced people into various
areas outside Mosul and have identified certain areas in the Suliemany
Governate to host some of these families. STEP are on standby to support with child
protection assessments. The
extent of trauma and suffering these families have endured will not
be fully understood for some time. STEP is currently supporting 12,000 displaced, refugee and local children through various projects on Iraq.

Many families have fled due to conflict and we are
meeting needs of vulnerable children and their families both in and out of
camps, for Internally
Displaced People (IDP) and Refugees. In camps we support through our Child friendly Spaces (CFS) and
Child Protection Units (CPU). For those in unofficial shelters
across the region we identify and support through our Mobile Teams that bring a wide range of services to
children and families in need. STEP is also working alongside the government to improve and
strengthen the overall Child Protection System in Kurdistan.

STEP's first project, a Child Friendly Space (CFS) in the heart of the Sulimany Bazar
called the Drop
In Center (DIC) opened its doors
to working children on the 2nd January 2002. Since then it has seen a huge
rise in the number and diversity of children due to the recent crisis in Syria
and Iraq. Last year there were 27,975 visits to the DIC and 1,630 children who visited for the first
time. Out of necessity it has become a place where children learn tolerance
and acceptance of those who are different.

Hassan is one of themany
working
children that visit the DIC each week. He had to leave his home of Salahadin in central Iraq due
to the current conflicts and fighting and has now been attending the DIC for two years. Hassan works
selling plastic bags, chewing gum and stickers in the Bazar,
he doesn't currently attend school. Unfortunately this is
a common story amongst many children living in the area. 'I have learnt how to
respect the rules, not to carry weapons, save public property and not
participate in the protests because it is not for children. I have made new
friendships as well', says
Hassan.

STEP supports
children like Hassan by providing:

~ a safe place for the children to rest
and play

~ support for education or vocational training

~ therapeutic art, music and sporting
activities

~ peace building and psychosocial support

~ legal advice and medical care

TheDIC moved to a bigger and better locationlast month. It is still in the centre of the Bazar where most of the
children work or beg. This has allowed us to providespecific rooms and
activities for girls as well as
more targeted therapeutic and psychosocial activities for the children. 'Here in the new
location we have a separate room for girls only, with special games for girls.
Also I like the big space and it is clean'. Mariam, 12 year old Syrian
refugee.

Syrian Boarder Opened - 2014

On August 15th the Kurdish and Iraqi authorities opened their
northern border with Syria. Since then over 50,000 Syrians crossed the border
and became refugees inside Iraq.

A temporary camp has been established, 30 minute drive outside the
city. There are plans to build a more permanent refugee camp, which will have
concrete bases for their tents and prefabricated buildings for a school and
child friendly spaces. However, this will take time.

Iraq is already home to some 150,000 refugees. In our location we
had around 15,000 mainly in the city before the recent influx. Many are living
four to five families to one rented house. A recent assessment indicated that
75% of their income was being used for rent. This means that financially many
are in critical situations.

It is estimated that by UN agencies that by the end of the year
there could be 350,000 refugees in Iraqi Kurdistan. Half of the refugees are
under 18 year old.

STEP in partnership with UNICEF and the local Department of Social
Affairs will be assisting refugee children by providing child and youth
friendly spaces and the monitoring of child protection violations.

There are many needs, children in particular will require warm
clothes and strong shoes for the winter. Recreational materials and sport
equipment will also be needed.